When It’s Time for a Major Renovation

When you’ve been living in a home for more than a decade, it’s normal to get bored. Sure, you’ve painted the bedroom 7 times and you’ve gotten the kitchen cabinets refinished, but maybe it still doesn’t feel right. Or maybe you recently purchased a new home for a steal, and love its location, but aren’t wild about the dark wood paneling throughout the closed-off first floor. Whatever your reason, a major renovation is a great way to keep the home and location you already have, while still getting the dream home you’ve always wanted. Here are a few examples of times when a large-scale renovation might be the right option for you and your family:

You love the location but the house doesn’t fit you

Maybe you inherited lakefront property, or maybe you’ve always loved the feeling of being tucked far back int he woods, but the home just isn’t you. If you’ve been in the same home for years, it’s normal to have grown out of your old style. On the other hand, we handle partial tear downs for many clients who have found the perfect location, and a home that has a few great elements, but needs to be reworked to fit them. There are quite a few homeowners who purchase a home with the full intent of conducting a major renovation or remodel before they move in, and that’s perfectly fine. Your home should always feel like it’s truly yours.

When you’ve got more people than bedrooms

A really good indication that it’s time for a remodel is when you have more people than living in your home than you have bedrooms. This happens a lot with younger couples who have a few kids, and find that their home has suddenly become too small. While a pair of bunk beds can solve the space issue temporarily, you probably know that once the kids get older they’re going to want their own space. This is one of the major reasons many families opt for additions and large-scale remodels. You get to keep the existing home you already love, but you also add on a bit more space to accommodate the rest of the family.

After the kids move out

When the kids go off to college or find jobs, you’ll realize you suddenly have a tone of space. There’s no hockey bags cluttering up the basement and the kitchen counter is free of essays, writing assignments, and math homework. Many find that as empty nesters, they don’t want to leave their family home, but they want to repurpose some of the extra space to better fit their lifestyle. After the kids move out is the perfect time to open up that first floor so you can entertain more often, or turn the playroom and study into a second guest bedroom. Some couples decide that this is also a good time to prepare for the future by remodeling the home so it’s more accessible, has fewer stairs and more accommodating bathrooms, and is more adaptable as they age.

When walking in the door feels like a blast from the past

If you walk in the front door and feel like you’re stepping into a scene from the 70s, it might be time for a change. There are a few easy tell-tale signs that point to an outdated home, like popcorn ceilings, closed off kitchens, and textured walls. (And don’t forget brightly colored shag carpeting…) If you feel like your home hasn’t changed since you moved in 20 to 30 years ago, it’s probably time for some sort of update. What’s more, at 20 to 30 years old, cabinets are going to start to wear out, floorboards might start popping up, and it’s likely more cost effective to get those issues fixed now, rather than later.

It’s freezing in the winter, and too hot in the summer

The number one sign of a home that’s begging for a major renovation is poor temperature regulation. If your home is absolutely chilly in the winter, and sweltering in the summer, it’s a sign that your insulation isn’t doing its job, or your HVAC system isn’t working properly. Either way, a large scale renovation will help address these issues. When you commission the remodel, you can have a builder re-insulate with better, top-of-the-line products, creating a better seal for your home, and you can install more energy efficient appliances like heaters and A/C units. Not only will this help keep your home at a comfortable temp, but you’ll save a big chunk of change on your energy bill.

When you don’t want to sell, but you want something new

Whether you love your neighborhood, like how close you are to work, or are sentimental about the home your kids grew up in, there are plenty of reasons to commission a large scale renovation instead of buying new. If you want a new home, but don’t actually want to move, or deal with the hassle of selling, a large scale renovation can be the perfect solution. A lot of times builders can reuse the good bones within your existing home to create the dream home you’ve always wanted. You can add a second floor or rearrange the floor plan to better suit your lifestyle; the options are endless, and you don’t have to worry about finding a realtor or selling the home you’ve lived in for years.

It’s always been a fixer upper

Older homes have so much charm, sometimes in the spite of the work it takes to keep them up. If you’ve purchased a fixer upper, and you love the feel of the home, but don’t want to work on it for the rest of your life, a major renovation might be in order. By replacing the plumbing, adding a new roof, putting on a bit of an addition, or reworking the HVAC system, you can keep the classic charm of that fixer upper, without actually having to fix it up all the time.

When you have the funds

Obviously, the best time to do a major renovation would be just after you won the lottery and planned on traveling the world for a year or so, but unfortunately that’s just not a reality for most of us. That said, there are times when you’ve saved up enough, or have the ability to comfortably borrow enough to make a major renovation possible. It’s good to know what you can spend, and what would be out of your budget before you go into the project, so you don’t outspend your savings or the loan from the bank. Knowing your budget ahead of time will also give you a clearer picture of what your home can look like, and which changes you can afford to make.

Large scale renovations have the opportunity to turn a house you weren’t originally in love with, into the home you’ve always dreamed of. The great thing about renovations is that you don’t have to deal with the hassles of putting a house up for sale or of moving, and you still end up with a home that’s truly yours at the end of the process. If you’ve been considering making some major changes to your home, give Michelle Tanner Homes a call. We specialize in large scale custom renovations, and we’d be happy to sit down with you to discover what it is you’re looking for in your renovation.